Trolley Brook Trail - Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Today town officials, volunteers and various supporters gathered to commemorate the opening of the Trolley Brook Trail with a ribbon cutting ceremony. The 1/2 mile long paved route connects from downtown Ashland, (Megunko road near Stone Park), to Memorial Drive, near the Ashland Middle School and the future site of the YMCA. This is just the first piece of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail, which will eventually connect Ashland to Sherborn, Holliston, Milford and Hopkinton and points beyond.

Above photos by Philip Bosinoff

Ribbon Cutting

First biker (Preston Crow) to use Trolley Brook Trail after Official Opening Ceremony

Above photos by Matthew Marshquist

Town officials and members of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail Committee hold the ribbon while Jenn Ball prepares to cut it. (Photo by Ashley Place)

The five-town, regional Upper Charles Trail, which was originally envisioned by Reno Deluzio of Milford and Robert Weidknecht of Holliston, was brought to life here in Ashland through the efforts of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail Committee with strong support from the many people and organizations listed below.

The Friends of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail would like to extend our deep appreciation to the various volunteers, staff and leaders who helped to provide guidance, planning, engineering, labor, funding and promotion of the trail.

The Ashland Upper Charles Trail Committee-Joel Arbeitman, Valerie Paul, Tony Lewis, Doug Costello, Preston Crow, David Rosenblum, Rob Scherer, Marty Ring, Chuck Lidz, and past members William Child and Rick Hampson.

The Ashland Select Board– Joe Magnani, Yolanda Greaves, Steve Mitchell, Brandi Kinsman, Rob Scherer

Town of Ashland Staff
Michael Herbert – Town Manager
Jenn Ball – Assistant Town Manager
Peter Matchak - Town Planner
Beth Reynolds - Director of Economic Development and Community Outreach
Ashley Place - Communications and Cultural Coordinator
Diane Mortenson – Personnel/Financial Assistant

Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Karen Spilka – represented at the opening by Susan Nicholl
Jack Lewis - State Representative for Ashland and Framingham
Peter Sutton - MassDOT Bicycle & Pedestrian Coordinator
Kevin Hollenbeck and Paul Jahnige - DCR State Parks
Libby Knott and Amanda Lewis - DCR Mass Trails Grant Program
David Loutzenheiser- MAPC Senior Transportation Planner

Friends of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail- Matthew Marshquist, Philip Bosinoff, Kamatchi Vijayakumar, Vijay Subramanian, Judy Rosenthal, Steve Crocetti, Scott Little, Cathy Rooney, Greg Wands

Project team
Bill Paille – BSC Group (Engineering Project Manager)
Mark McCloud – Ramco Survey Stake Co. (contractor which built the trail))

Community supporters
Aaron Ladd - Ashland Community Preservation Committee (CPC)
Rick MacPherson - President & CEO of MetroWest YMCA
Peter Waisgerber - Chief Development Officer of MetroWest YMCA
Rick Alberini (business owner abutting the trail)
Media - WACA TV

Trolley Brook Trail Progress - September 29, 2021

Wonderful progress continues on the trail; see the photos below, taken today 9/29/2021. A couple of very friendly surveyors were busy marking the trail with orange markers: orange rocks in the exact center, and vertical orange stakes marking the precise edge of the path. They said the pavement will stop two feet inside the edge markers, and those two feet will be filled with gravel and loam.

The river crossing appears ready to receive the new bridge, which is temporarily sitting beside the trail. Paving will begin after the bridge is set in place.

The slope up to Memorial Drive is remarkably smooth and gradual compared to before trail construction began.

Photos courtesy of Philip Bosinoff

Trolley Brook Trail Progress - July 5, 2021

Exciting news! The Trolley Brook Trail portion of the Ashland Upper Charles Trail is funded and construction has begun! Paving is underway. Four of us, including Tony and Phil, walked the trail on July 5 to see the progress.

It has all been widened, with trees either already removed or labeled to be removed. Green trail barriers (erosion control) mark the trail width. At this point it appears the trail surface is flattened at full width from the Megunko Rd. entrance up to the bridge.

See the photos below. Compare with how the trail looked in prior Trolley Brook blog posts.

You may recall the small bridge along the trail. That bridge has been replaced with a much larger, still temporary, one. It is our understanding that the final trail will have a 30 foot bridge here! Compare an older photo on the left with the newer ones. You can even see the old bridge - two boards - in the bottom right photo.

Photos courtesy of Philip Bosinoff